Apple and the Boltcutter

Fiona Apple’s fifth album is an eccentric retelling of days spent in the lockdown and the imposing thoughts that emerge in isolation

This album is the closest to Fiona Apple’s sound than any of her previous albums. She explores some of her very deep and personal struggles while producing a tune of merriment and escapism.

The album sets a raw tone to the sound she produces from her Venice Beach home. The frustrations of coming to life in times of the pandemic create an unfettered symphony. Apple expresses her thoughts on life, love and betrayal. Listeners will be amused that she retains even her off-key notes and behind-the-scenes chatter [that most artistes prefer to edit out] in her tracks. The feverish drum beats, claps and bangs add to the atmospheric element that is predominant in this album. When most artistes seek to look for ways to fine-tune their music, Apple seems to have found ways to bring out what could be one of the more original sounds to have emerged from the lockdown.

What makes this album relatable, likeable and outright absurd is the fact that it speaks about life as honestly as one can. There are no embellishments and it is this unadorned musicality that makes Apple’s new album quite possibly one of the most refreshing. The lyricism maximises the impact of the raucous activities in the background, making the music all the more poignant. She isn’t keen to take the varied traumas of her life, relationships, critics and her own mind seriously. Apple raps, sings, screams and languishes within the four walls of her home just as all of us did during the initial days of the pandemic. It’s erratic and yet sublimely cathartic, making it an important album purely for its brazen experimentation, unadulterated lyricism and rapturous stylistic choices.

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